"I'm so Sorry I just....I don't want you to think I'm a bad person," Ren Gazed at His Screen
"It's hard for me to talk about this… but I want to be honest."
Serin's gaze sharpened. "Then stop apologizing for every breath you take and just talk, Ren."
Ren blinked. A dry chuckle slipped out.
"Heh… right."
His fingers fidgeted under the desk as he looked outside the window, where sunlight broke through the clouds like a memory he wasn't ready to face.
"It started... around two years ago."
Two Years Ago – Spring
The school terrace was quiet except for the lazy rustling of wind.
Ashiwkun leaned against the railing, arms crossed, frustration burning behind his eyes. "You're telling me you just broke up with this Girl and now you're dating another girl after ONEWEEK?"
Ren stretched, casually resting his hands behind his head. "Don't be so dramatic. I'm just living life. Girls come and go."
Ashiwkun narrowed his eyes. "You need to stop messing with people's feelings. This isn't a game, Ren."
But Ren… just smiled.
He walked up to the dusty mirror fixed beside the terrace pillar. "You and I… we're pretty damn handsome, huh?"
He gestured to their reflections. "Can you blame girls for falling?"
Ashiwkun scoffed. "Grow up."
But Ren wasn't listening anymore. His attention had shifted — not to his reflection, but to the girl on the school ground below.
She stood alone, a shy figure near the cherry blossom tree.
Hayane.
She wasn't loud. She didn't stand out. But she had this gentle softness, like a breeze you didn't notice until it was gone. Her cheeks were full, always tinged pink, and her eyes sparkled like someone who still believed in love letters and fairy tales.
Ren made his way down and waved. Hayane smiled, shyly tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
"You're late," she whispered.
Ren grinned. "Well, fashionably."
Hayane giggled, her cheeks pinker than ever. "I… I brought you something."
She handed him a small, slightly crumpled pink box.
He opened it and stared. "Cookies?"
"I made them… for you. I tried a new recipe."
Ren blinked, surprised. "You really didn't have to. But… wow. Thank you."
He took a bite, crunching down dramatically. "10/10."
Hayane's eyes lit up. "Really?! I was scared you'd find it too sweet."
Ren laughed. "You're sweet. The cookies are fine."
She covered her face with both hands, trying to hide her smile.
"Stop It…"
They walked together, settling on the empty benches by the field. A group of juniors was practicing a dance nearby.
Hayane laughed softly, covering her mouth. "You always eat the fried stuff first."
Ren shrugged. "You're the one who keeps giving it to me. What do you expect?"
Hayane gave a small pout. "That you'd learn to save the best for last."
Ren smirked. "Then stop making the best stuff."
She blushed. Her fingers curled in the hem of her skirt.
"Ren," she said suddenly, voice softer. "Do you think I'm weird?"
"Huh? Where'd that come from?"
"I don't know… I just—sometimes I feel like I'm not... exciting enough. Not interesting."
Ren's smirk faded just a little. He looked at her more seriously.
"You think I'm here for excitement?"
Hayane hesitated. Then shook her head.
"I think... you're here because you're kind. Even if you pretend not to be."
Ren leaned back on his hands, looking at the sky.
"You're wrong, you know."
She blinked.
"I'm not kind. I just... don't know how to leave things that feel peaceful."
She tilted her head. "So you stayed because I made you feel peaceful?"
He looked at her. The wind tugged lightly at her hair.
Ren didn't say anything. But for a moment, Hayane smiled like a child being told they were beautiful for the first time.
Hayane rested her head on Ren's shoulder. She didn't ask — she just did.
"Do you think…" she began, her voice hesitant, "you could ever... love someone like me?"
Ren glanced at her.
"You really ask that so directly?"
Her cheeks burned, but she didn't look away. "Only because it's you."
He exhaled. "I don't know how to love properly, Hayane."
She smiled. "That's okay. I'll love you enough for both of us."
Something inside Ren flickered. But he didn't say anything. He only let her rest against him a little longer.
"Ooh... the student council asked me to meet them during break," he'd said with that carefree grin.
She'd smiled. "Just one second, okay?"
"One second," he replied.
One second became ten minutes.
Then twenty.
Then thirty.
Hayane waited For him under the cherry tree.
Her hands held tightly to a folded letter.
She'd written it late at night.
A confession.
A dream.
Steps echoed behind her.
"OMG....! Is this is it ? My confession ? My dream ?"
Hayane started to blush
But it wasn't Ren.
It was Ashiwkun.
His face was red, angry.
"You looking for him too?" he spat.
Hayane blinked. "Wh-What happened?"
Ashiwkun didn't answer. He stormed past her.
She followed.
Heart pounding, she reached the hallway—just in time to hear the voices.
he stopped at the door and turned to her.
"Wait here."
His voice was firm.
Protective.
She nodded, confused and concerned.
Ashiwkun entered the school building, leaving Hayane standing there Outside The classroom, heart pounding harder with every passing second.
"You think this is funny?" Ashiwkun snapped.
Ren tilted his head. "What's with the drama?"
Ashiwkun: "You're not serious, Ren! She loves you."
Ren leaned back. "So?"
Ashiwkun's fists clenched. "So?! She cares about you! Don't you see what she's become because of you?"
Ren chuckled dryly. "She was sweet, sure. Innocent. Fun."
Ashiwkun's voice dropped an octave, dark with disbelief.
"Are you even hearing yourself?"
Ren turned his gaze to the window. "Look, people get attached. That's not my fault. Maybe she was just… too soft."
Ashiwkun's voice shook. "You used her."
A pause.
Then Ren smirked. A cold, careless smirk that shattered every illusion.
"…Well," he said, voice flat.
"I got bored."
Everything Went Silent...
Hayane fell to her knees outside the door, the letter slipping from her trembling hands.
Her eyes wide.
Her lips trembling.
Her body froze.
The hallway blurred.
Her ears rang.
Her chest burned with something worse than heartbreak—it was confusion.
Shame.
Shock.
She wasn't even crying yet.
Her mind refused to believe it.
All those warm touches…
All the late talks…
The cookies…
The smile when he held her hand…
Was it all just pretend?
Her hands covered her mouth, trying to hold something in — a scream, a sob, a truth she didn't want to face.
She wanted to run. But her legs wouldn't move.
She wanted to cry. But the tears didn't came.
She just sat there, shaking.
Eyes wide.
Heart shattered.
And then—
Through the crack of the door,
Ren's voice floated out again, calm and cruel:
"Well… I got bored."